(Newser)
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America is lagging far behind other countries in preventing premature death among adults and now ranks behind Chile, Tunisia, and Peru, warn the authors of a new study. The researchers analyzed data on deaths before age 60 and found that over the last 20 years, the US has tumbled from 34th in female mortality and 41st in male to 49th for women and 45th for men, Reuters reports. Icelandic men and Cypriot women are the most likely to see their 60th birthdays.

"The US is definitely on the wrong trajectory," one of the study's authors says, blaming obesity, smoking, cholesterol, and a flawed health care system. "I think that our primary care system is not effectively managing things like blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar," he told MedPage Today. "So even though we spend a lot of money, we don't seem to be spending it in the areas that really generate a lot of health."

How much more do you need to know before you realize there is a major problem with our healthcare system. Single Payer is the only way to go.

SC23

Apr 30, 2010 10:30 PM CDT

You can say it is the lifestyle but our health care system is the real problem. What is scarier is that our health care revolution did nothing to change the system, just make sure everyone was a part of this epic failure. The change needs to be with the system, not how to pay for this broke piece of back-scratching crap. Stop advertising the drug of the week, stop prescribing anti-biotics like theyre candy allow real competition in the market, stop playing the patent game and forcing us to pay exorbitant amounts for drugs which should have had generics years ago..the list goes on and on... ok and put down the triple cheese burger.